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Vernon Ellingson was born in Bismarck on October 8, 1912. By the time he was a year old, his family had moved to Grand Forks. In 1923, Vernon’s father Adolph ordered a Sears Roebuck house plan and built the home of his dreams. The family had to live for a time in the garage while […]

In August of 1898, Justice Guy Corliss of the North Dakota Supreme Court surprised nearly everyone when he resigned after nearly nine years on the bench. Having been elected as the youngest of the three original justices to the court, the young Corliss had just celebrated his fortieth birthday. When asked why he was resigning, […]

Author Willa Cather was born on this date in 1873. Although born in Virginia, she will forever be identified with pioneering on the Great Plains. She described the Plains as the great passion of her life. She wrote, “When I strike the open plains, something happens. I’m home. I breathe differently.” Cather’s family moved to […]

During World War I, North Dakotans from all walks of life joined the army. Among them were two brothers from near Rolla in Rollette County – Clarence and Lyle Davis, who enlisted in Company G, Second Infantry, North Dakota National Guard, on July 13, 1917. They were immediately called into federal service. Clarence and […]

Frank Zastoupil’s grandfather journeyed from Bohemia in Austria-Hungary to Russia when the Czarina Catherine the Great offered Russian land and religious freedom to new settlers. The Zastoupil family dwelled in a village surrounded by fellow Bohemians. They farmed side by side in their new country, danced polkas and waltzes, sang with great passion, and shared […]

It may seem odd that the Gatling gun, forerunner of the machine gun, was invented by a doctor, but so it was. Dr. Richard J. Gatling invented the gun in 1861. He received a patent on this date in 1862. He created the new weapon to reduce the size of armies, reasoning that one gunner […]

Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery spent the winter of 1804-1805 on the Missouri River. On this date in 1804, they established Fort Mandan. The Mandan Indians had been very hospitable, and the fort was named for the friendly tribe. The expedition cut lumber for the fort from the riverbanks. This was the sturdiest and […]

To hear the word curling brings to mind images of hair-dos and electric curling irons, or maybe even bacon sizzling in a pan, but to winter sports enthusiasts in the North Country, the word curling brings forth memories of rinks, the skip (or captain), 40-pound granite stones, and the whisking brooms sweeping the polished ice […]

Hugh J. Hughes, director of markets for the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, spoke in Moorhead on this date in 1923. The Fargo Forum reported that he addressed a gathering of businessmen and farmers, many of them from North Dakota. Hughes expressed concern about the future of agriculture in the Red River Valley. He caused a […]

The road to statehood had been a long, difficult journey encompassing thirty-two years. Officially it began on March 2, 1861, when the Organic Act creating the Territory of Dakota was issued; however, attempts at statehood had an earlier beginning. In 1857, the Dakota Land Company promoted the states of Minnesota and Dakota. The company, comprised […]

War shapes a man; his ideas and values. This was no less true of Warren Christopher, the 63rd Secretary of State under President Bill Clinton. Born in Scranton, North Dakota in 1925, Warren Christopher moved to Hollywood, California while a young teen. Like many young men, he relished the idea of attending college and enrolled […]

On this date in 1925, Warren Christopher was born in Scranton, North Dakota. He attended the University of Southern California, where he graduated magna cum laude. During World War II he served in the Navy. After the war, he graduated from Stanford Law School, and went on to serve as law clerk to Justice William […]

For North Dakota, Prohibition had come with statehood in 1889. Although ban on alcohol was extremely unpopular with the majority of citizens in the state, the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union and ministerial associations managed to thwart any efforts to amend the Constitution and repeal the laws. Bootleggers and “blind piggers” became folk heroes, and bathtub […]

Vice Presidential candidate Richard Nixon drew large crowds when he appeared on the campaign trail on this date in 1952. He started the day in Moorhead. His train arrived twenty minutes late, and when it did arrive, it overshot the station. The large crowd had to wait while the train backed up. Journalists reported that […]

Fort Abercrombie was known as the Gateway to the West. It was the first permanent United States military fort in what is now North Dakota. Established in 1858 by an act of Congress, it was named for the officer in charge, Lieutenant Colonel John J. Abercrombie. The fort’s initial purpose was to guard the oxcart […]

On October 16th, Territorial Governor Mellette and Secretary Richardson met in Bismarck and canvassed the election results. Completed on the 17th, they made the arrangements to provide a certified copy of the vote along with a certified copy of the North Dakota State Constitution to President Benjamin Harrison. It was hoped that the Presidential Proclamation […]

One hundred years ago, the City of Bismarck was filled with activity concerning the Fourth Annual North Dakota Industrial Exposition. They were also commemorating the 25th anniversary of statehood. Many of the members of the constitution convention returned to visit the scene where they worked so hard to place the 39th star on the national […]

It was on this day in 1944 that the Army Corps of Engineers and the U. S. Bureau of Reclamation reached an agreement on a Missouri Basin flood control project, known as the Pick-Sloan Plan, which led to the building of Garrison Dam. And on this date, in 1905, John Rooney was hanged at […]

As one of his last acts as governor of Dakota Territory, A. C. Mellette would meet with Secretary L. B. Richardson and Chief Justice Bartlett Trip in Bismarck on October 17th to certify the fall election. Once that was completed, he would send a certified copy to President Benjamin Harrison along with a copy of […]

In 1862 the United States Congress approved an act that authorized land grant colleges. Through this system, grants of public lands were made to states and territories. The purpose was to create at least one college dedicated to agriculture in each state and territory. In 1883 the Dakota Territorial Council passed a bill authorizing an […]